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Oregon budget: Lawmakers propose $175 million more for social services, prisons

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The Department of Corrections has about 200 more inmates than projected, contributing to a $90 million budget gap. Lawmakers expect to fill all but $14 million of that gap.
(Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian)

The adjustments under review by
legislative leaders would fill the $100 million gap in the budget of the
Department of Human Services and $76 million of the $90 million gap in
the Department of Corrections, said Rep. Peter Buckley, D-Ashland, one of the chairs of Joint Ways & Means Committee.

"There are no program cuts," Buckley said. "But they still have challenges."

Much
of the money to fill the gaps in the two departments would come from
two sources: the restoration of money held back last year and the
distribution of money set aside for collective bargaining costs.

Lawmakers
last year withheld 2 percent from the general fund budgets of state
agencies, with the exception of most education programs, after the
previous budget cycle ended with less money than expected. They'll have
to consider how much of that $154 million to release this year.

Under
the proposed budget deal, the departments of Corrections, Human
Services, Justice and some small agencies would receive the full amount
withheld, Buckley said. Other departments would receive varying
percentages of the money restored while others, such as the Department
of Revenue, would not receive any of the withheld money, he said.

About
$86.5 million set aside last year in a "salary pot" to cover collective
bargaining costs will also be distributed, Buckley said.

General fund money is expected to pay for a $40 million bill from last year's record-setting wildfire season, he said.

Some of the money freed up for prisons, social services and other expenses is expected to come from small tweaks, such as delaying the starting dates for some programs. An Oregon State Police training program slated to start next year is expected to be postponed by a few months, saving some additional dollars, Buckley said.

In Human Services, additional money is expected to include $7 million from a contingency fund for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a cash welfare program for very poor families. Another $3.2 million came from the federal government as a "bonus" money reward for high enrollment in the food stamp program.

"We have 200 inmates that we did not receive funding for," Botkin said. She would like to see the restoration of additional funds withheld last year to pay for more staff and to comply with a federal law on the elimination of prison rapes.

Lawmakers simply can't meet all the budget requests and must consider where the budget might land at the end of the biennium next year, Buckley said.

"A major focus of the rebalance was to make sure our ending fund balance is over $100 million in case we have another bad wildfire season" or other expenses, Buckley said.

In anticipation of future expenses, budget writers are expected to set aside $55 million for the Emergency Board, a panel of lawmakers that meets periodically when the Legislature isn't in session to adjust state budgets. About $25 million of that would be reserved for the Department of Human Services and the Oregon Health Authority in case their caseloads increase, while the rest would be available for other expenses, Buckley said.